Fragrances and asthma/allergies

PML, It’s definitely a tough thing to deal with, today we have so many allergens in our environment so that makes it difficult to deal with, we get smoke days that come from places quite far away but the wind blows everything everywhere, I don’t feel well using antihistamines so it’s not an option. I worry so much about my survival, I live in a large high rise apartment and if I open my window I immediately smell tobacco or even marijuana drifting into my home so I keep them closed, sometimes I can smell tobacco even when they’re closed because it seeps through the walls and floors, it’s an old building. I’m a lung cancer survivor and so I will get very depressed due to the pollution because it makes me feel hopeless, I do my best to take care of myself but I feel defeated and there’s nothing I can do about it.

Hi Frouke,
That's too bad that you have those problems! That must be very hard to deal with. My nose is very sensitive to odors and dust and also my husband with his lung cancer had a problem with that sort of thing too. Whenever we went shopping or to a doctor's appointment we would put an antibiotic cream like Neosporin in our noses before we left the house. It helped to keep out smells, dust and germs. Also it helped a lot in the parking garages with all their fumes. It didn't always work but it was better than nothing. We tried wearing a mask but it just made us feel claustrophobic and unable to breathe. However, the time that my dentures broke and I had to be without teeth for a time in public the mask worked great and didn't affect my breathing! Maybe that was just my pride! It's hard to know what will work and when but when I find something that does work I just keep using it.
PML

I was diagnosed with COPD and asthma many years ago, I also have problems with fragrances but even allergies to environmental toxins. On days when the air is heavy with moisture I’ll feel my chest get tight and then the coughing starts, too much dust will also do the trick, sometimes I will react to something unknown and there’s no obvious smell to determine what it is. I find that wearing my mask outside is fairly helpful but definitely not perfect.

I guess I wasn’t clear but I was in a health care providers office. I did say something and I was firm. I won’t ever see that person again. I waited outside until the provider called me in when she was ready for me.

@shar1504

As @pml stated, just let the person know of your sensitivity to perfumes without bringing rude….rudeness is not necessary and solves nothing. Physically keep your distance if you can or perhaps hold a tissue over your nose. No one likes to smell strong odors emanating from people especially if it’s from someone you see daily. Ask if anyone else around her is feeling the same way. It’s a sensitive issue and she may not realize how she is affecting others. Years ago , in my workplace, we did have a manager intervene with someone in a similar situation. It was resolved but we don’t know what was said.

FL Mary

Hi Shar1504,
I know how you feel. I am very sensitive to strong perfumes. I react to them and feel sick. My mom had pulmonary emphysema and had an awful time around strong perfumes. Recently, the hospitals in Washington State where I live have signs up asking people not to wear perfume. Perfumes don't smell good like they used to. Chanel #5 was never offensive.
It might be best to just tell the perfume wearers that you have asthma and that their perfume really bothers you. Otherwise, you may just end up in an argument that you would be blamed for.
I wish you the best.
PML

For any pulmonologist I have seen - I have asthma - the intake questionnaire asks if I have ever been exposed to fumes. The answer is yes, when I worked. Yesterday I was exposed to a horrible perfume that seemed as if the wearer had bathed herself in gasoline. I am sick and tired of people forcing me to smell something that they “enjoy” when they need to be using it “in bed” and showering off when they are done. I am still freaked by the asthma attack I had. I have decided to just start being as insulting verbally as perfume wearers are by wearing that garbage smell, for the most part, and tell them they have BO.

Hi Lisa, thanks for the reply. It sounds like we have a similar problem. I also cough badly with tightness of chest and a lot of phlegm, and I’ve never wheezedMy Home, my children’s homes, and a number of my friends homes are now completely scent free and all personal products are sent free as well which help a lot. I’ve managed to control my worst attacks with a combination of emergency, inhalers, Atrovent and a salbutamol which are available in Canada and the thoracic Institute has walked in clinics for asthmatic so I haven’t to go into the emergency. Unfortunately, it’s difficult to go anywhere else even with an N 95 mask as a single whiff of scent is enough to bring on an attack. I just wish there was more awareness of the dangers from these chemicals that smell nice, but they’re so toxic. There are no cures at present, only avoidance and coping with the symptoms.

I've not tried acupuncture, @drsharon. I have reactions to products made with faux fragrance ingredients and have taken many of the same steps as you. Fortunately, my husband and kids think just about anything that smells other than food "stinks," so no one in my household is working "against me" toward a highly fragranced household.

My version of an asthma reaction to chemical irritants is a coughing fit. I also feel like I'm wheezing and my lungs are tightening, but not audibly. But I've never had to see a doctor immediately for this.

My friend reacts so much to strong fragrances that we've had to call an ambulance.

What is the most difficult reaction you've had to fragrances, drsharon? Have you had to go to the ER?

I was wondering if anyone has tried acupuncture for fragrance sensitivity. I’m not overly optimistic but I’m already using all the conventional treatments and wish there was something more I could do.